Railway-cab signal.



HQ'G. SEDGWIGK.

RAILWAY CAB SIGNAL.

APPLICATION FILED AUG. 24, 1910.

Patented Dec. 30,1913;

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H. G. SEDGWI'GK.

' RAILWAY GAB SIGNAL. 1,082,824.

APPLIOATION FILED AUG. 24, 1910.

Patented Dec. 30, 1913.

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HIRAM G. SEIDGWICK, 01 MILL VALLEY, CALIFORNIA, ASSIGNOR TO THE NATIONAL SAFETY APPLIANCE COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF CALIFORNIA.

RAILWAY-CAB SIGNAL.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Eco. 3d, 1913.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HIRAM G. Snnowron, a citizen of the United States of Amerlca,

into operative position. In Fig. 2 they are shown as being operated electrically from the usual block signaling system, they being and a resident of Mill Valley, in the county connected up in any suitable manner with i of Marin and State of California, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Railway-Cab Signals, of which the fol-.

lowin is a full and clear soecification reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a side elevation of a portion of a locomotive showing the mechanism there! on; Fig. 2 is a diagram of a portion of a railway block signal system showing the application of my invention thereto; Figs. 3 and 4: are detail vertical sectional views of the circuit closer on the locomotive; and, Fig. 5 is a detail vertical sectional view showing the manner of connecting up the tripper on the roadbed with a semaphore.

The object of this invention is to provide signal or train-stopping mechanism of a simple construction which will give a preliminary signal of one kind before the train reaches the end of the block and then a final signal accompanied, if desired, by auto-, matic stopping of the train when the train reaches the end of the block, this final signal being preferably of a character differing from the preliminary signal, as more fully I hereinafter set forth.

In connection with the present invention, I preferably employ a roadbed mechanism embodying a tripper arm of the type covered by my copending application, Ser. No. 568448, this tripper embodying an upright arm or post mounted on the roadbed adjacent one of the rails and provided with a front flat'face and a rear face provided with a vertical fin, which fin when the tripper post is properly adjusted will enter a sort of channel shoe on the locomotive and thus put into operation the train-stopping or signaling means on the locomotive. In the drawings accompanying, I have shown two of these tripper posts lettered respectively a and b, the former being at some distance from the end of the block and the latter being, as usual, located at or near the end of the block. These tripper posts are rotatably mounted at the inner end of a hollow arm 0 and are held in a normally vertical position by springs cl attached to said hollow arm. These tripper posts may be rotated in any suitable manner to bring them the electrically-o-perated semaphores 6, so

that when the semaphores are shifted to danger in the usual manner, the tripper posts will be shifted to danger position, that is, with their fins f facing the oncoming train. In Fig. 5 I show one way in which the tripper posts may be operated mechanically in unison with the semaphore, this being accomplished simply by connecting the semaphore arm with the tripper post by means of a wire g, the tripper post being provided with a drum h at its lower end on which the wire is wound and with convolute spring z to normally hold the wire taut and thus return the tripper post to normal when the semaphore arm is lowered. It will be observed that in whatever way the tripper posts are operated they will be both simultaneously shifted to danger position when the, semaphore or semaphores are shifted to danger automatically by the usual electrical block system.

On a suitable part of the frame of the 10- comotive I afix an inverted channel shoe j and I pivot and suitably insulate therein a pair of contact arms in whose contact ends overlap and lie close together but separated from each other. These arms are a part of a circuit Z which includes a battery and one or more signal devices, preferably a red lamp m and a magnet n for operating an audible signal of any suitable type. The contact arms 70 are so located with reference to the lower edge of the shoe that in passing the preliminary tripper a they will be brought into contact by the fin f on the tripper, this fin being of sufficient width to raise the lower contact arm only high enough to make a good contact, whereupon the preliminary signals m and n will be actuated. Springs 0 normally hold the contact arms downwardly, so that in order that the contact may be maintained and the signals be continued until the engineer manually releases them I provide means for holding the contact, such means consisting of a spring-actuated pin 79 mounted in a hole in one side of the shoe and adapted to normally bear against the adjacent edge of one of the contact arms, so that when the contact arm is raised, this pin will be pro jected under the same and thus hold it up into contact with the contact arm above. A suitable wire or rod 9 may be attached to this pin and extended to a point where it will be within convenient reach of the engineer, whereby the engineer may withdraw the pin manually.

The final or main tripper post I; has its fin f made wider than the preliminary tripper a so that as it passes the shoe it will enter the same to a greater distance than the preliminary fin and thus raise the contact arms to a higher point. This secondary movement of the contact arms may be translated in any suitable manner to give a final warning signal and in addition or in lieu thereof operate a train stopping mechanism. In the drawing I have shown a small cylinder 7' mounted on top of the shoe and provided with a tightly fitting piston 8, this piston being provided with a stem t which depends to a point just above the contact arms, so that when the contact arms are raised to a predetermined point the piston s will be raised far enough to uncover a port a in the side of the cylinder and connected with a pipe 1) which in turn is connected to a suitable fluidpressure source, such as the air reservoir or steam space of the boiler or the air-brake system. \Vhen the piston is raised above said port a the fluid will escape at port 10 and thus be utilized to operate a whistle 00 if the pipe 42 be connected to the reservoir or steam space, or be permitted to escape into the atmosphere if said pipe u be connected to the brake system in such manner as to apply the brakes automatically.

It will be observed that my improvements may be applied to the existing signal systems without any change whatever therein and that it will be wholly automatic in unison therewith and will therefore be out of the control entirely of the train crew.

WVhat I claim, is

1. In a railway appliance of the class set forth, a channel shoe mounted on the train,

a pair of contact arms superposed within the channel of the shoe normally out of contact,

and an electric signal device adapted to op-' erate when said arms are brought into contact.

2. In a railway appliance of the class set forth, a channel shoe mounted on the train,

a pair of contact arms superposed within the channel of the shoe normally out of contact, an electric signal device adapted to operate when said arms are brought into contact, and a train stopping mechanism adapted to be operated by the continued movement of said arms after they are brought into contact and moved upwardly a predetermined distance.

3. In a railway appliance of the class set forth, a channel shoe mounted on the train, a pair of contact arms superposed within the channel of the shoe normally out of contact, an electric signal device adapted to operate when said arms are brought into contact, andan automatic lock for holding the said arms in contact.

In testimony whereof I hereunto affix my signature in the presence of two witnesses 7 this 18 day of August, 1910.

HIRAM G. SEDGWICK.

Witnesses:

S. H. RoBnRTs, HENRIETTA ROBERTS.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents. Washington, D. 0. 

